Six deaths occurred in the district of Lago and four in the city of Lichinga, the provincial capital, according to José Manuel, director of the provincial health service in Niassa, quoted today by Rádio Moçambique.

According to the official, of the more than 600 cases of cholera diagnosed in the province since the outbreak, 612 have been discharged from hospital and 13 patients are still in 12 treatment centers.

"Fortunately, there has been a good response from the medicines center. Just yesterday we received around 7,000 balloons of saline solution in our province," he said, talking about the availability of medical supplies to treat the disease.

According to the source, 112 cases of diarrhea and vomiting were also recorded in the districts of Sanga and Mecanhelas, which led the authorities to take samples for the National Health Institute.

The health authorities suspect that the cases were imported from Malawi, a country that borders the Lago district and which has recorded cases of the disease.

Cholera is a disease that causes severe diarrhea, which is treatable, but which can cause death by dehydration if not promptly combated - it is largely caused by ingesting contaminated food and water due to poor sanitation. (Lusa)